Maelstrom Reborn: The Red Pyramid
by Shinobi Duelist
Summary: Carter and Sadie Kane are on a quest, to defeat Set and stop him from killing their father, and save the world. But how on Earth will they do it alone...and who is the strange blonde boy with whisker marks, that appeared after Julius Kane destroyed the Rosetta Stone?
1. Chapter 1: Blonde Who Was Lost To Time

**Summary: Carter and Sadie Kane are on a quest, to defeat Set and stop him from killing their father, and save the world. But how on Earth will they do it alone...and who is the strange blonde boy with whisker marks, that appeared after Julius Kane destroyed the Rosetta Stone?**

**Disclaimer: Shinobi Duelist does not own Naruto or The Kane Chronicles (Yet...)**

**Before you ask what god Naruto hosts, just wait and you'll find out, okay?**

**Yes, there will be lemons.**

**Pairings: NarutoXSadie **

**CarterXZia**

**I like Walt, I really do. But this is just a fanfic, so get over it.**

**Also...FIRST EVER NARUTO/KANE CHRONICLES CROSSOVER ON THIS SITE! WOOHOO!**

* * *

**Chapter 1: The Blonde That Was Lost To Time**

The family of three were in the British Museum after hours. The Museum was closed and completely dark, but the curator and two security guards looked at the three, seemingly waiting for them on the front steps.

"Dr Kane!" The curator was a greasy little dude in a cheap suit. Carter, the elder of the two children, had seen mummies with more hair and better teeth than the curator. The little man shook Julius Kane's hand like he was meeting a rock star. "Your last paper on Imhotep- brilliant! I don't know how you translate those spells!"

"Im-ho-who?" Sadie, the younger of the two, muttered. She lived with her Grandparents in England, while Carter and his father travelled. Julius was only allowed two days with her, one in summer, once in winter. You would never have guessed she and Carter were related. Firstly, she had been living in England for so long, that she had a British Accent. Second was that, unlike Carter, she took after their mother, who was white, so Sadie's skin was much lighter than Carters. She had straight caramel-coloured hair, not exactly blonde but not brown, which she usually dyed with streaks of bright colours. That day it had red streaks down the left side. Her eyes were a deep sea blue. She was only 12, but was exactly the same height as Carter, which annoyed him to no end. She was chewing her gum, as usual, dressed for one of two days she spent with her father. She wore battered jeans, a leather jacket, and combat boots, like she was going to a concert and was hoping to stomp on some people. She had headphones dangling around her neck in case she got bored.

"Imhotep," Carter responded in an annoyed voice. "High priest, architect. Some say he was a magician. Designed the first step pyramid. You know." Carter resembled Julius a great deal. He was dark skinned, much like his father, with brown eyes. He had curly brown hair on his head, but it was very short. He held his suitcase at his side, and was dressed similarly to his father. He wore brown pants that reached just below his ankles, a brown shirt that was tucked in, along with a black tie. He wore a large white coat, like he was a junior professor.

"Don't know," Sadie said. "Don't care. But thanks."

Julius expressed his gratitude to the curator for hosting them on a holiday. He then put his hand on Carter's shoulder. "Dr Martin, I'd like you to meet Carter and Sadie." Julius Kane was a big guy, you wouldn't think a thing could scare him. He had dark brown skin like Carter's, piercing brown eyes, a bald head and a goatee, so he looked like a buff evil scientist. That day he wore his cash=mere winter coat and his best brown suit, the one he used for public lectures.

"Ah! Your son, obviously and-" The curator looked hesitantly at Sadie. "And this young lady?"

"My daughter," Julius told him.

Dr Martin's stare went temporarily blank. It didn't matter how open-minded or polite people thought they were, there was always that moment of confusion that flashes across their face when they realized Sadie was related to Carter and Julius. Both Carter and Sadie, unknown to the other, absolutely loathed that look. But over the years, the two had come to expect it.

The curator regained his smile. "Yes, yes, of course. Right this way, Dr Kane. We're very honoured!"

The security guards locked the doors behind them. They took their luggage, well Carter and Julius', but when one reached for Julius' workbag he made a tight smile.

"Ah no," he said as kindly as he could without sounding strained. "I'll keep this one."

The guards stayed in the foyer as the family of three followed the curator into the Great Court. It was ominous at night. Dim light from the glass-domed ceiling cast crosshatched shadows across the walls like a giant spiderweb. Their footsteps clicked on the white marble floor.

"So," Julius said, "the stone."

"Yes!" The curator said. "Though I can't imagine what new information you could glean from it. It's been studied to death- our most famous artefact, of course."

"Of course," Julius agreed. "But you may be surprised."

"What's he on about now?" Sadie whispered to Carter.

Carter didn't answer her. He had a sneaking suspicion about the stone they were talking about, but he had no idea as to why their father would drag the two of them on Christmas Eve to see it.

Carter wondered what Julius had been about to tell them at Cleopatra's Needle- something about their mother and the night she'd died. And why had he kept glancing around, as if he expected those strange people they'd seen at the Needle to pop up again? They were locked in a museum surrounded by guards and high-tech security. Nothing could bother them in there...at least he hoped.

They turned left into the Egyptian wing. The walls were lined with massive statues of the pharaohs and gods, but Julius Kane bypassed them all and went straight for the main attraction in the middle of the room. "Beautiful," he murmured. "And it's not a replica?"

"No, no," the curator promised. "We don't always keep the actual stone on display, but for you- this is quite real."

They were staring at a slab of dark grey rock about three feet tall and two feet wide. it sat on a pedestal, encased in a glass box. The flat surface of the stone was chiselled with three distinct bands of writing. The top part was Ancient Egyptian picture writing: hieroglyphics. The middle section...Carter had to rake his brain to remember what it was called: _Demotic_, a kind of writing fom the period when the Greeks controlled Egypt and a lot of Greek words got mixed into Egyptian. The last lines were Greek.

"The Rosetta Stone," Carter said, earning a nod from Julius.

"Isn't that a computer program?" Sadie asked.

Carter wanted to face palm and tell her how stupid she was, but Dr Martin cut her off with a nervous laugh. "Young lady, the Rosetta Stone was the key to deciphering hieroglyphics! It was discovered by Napoleon's army in 1799 and-"

"Oh, right," Sadie said. "I remember now."

She didn't really remember. She was just saying that to shut him up, but Julius had other ideas.

"Sadie," he said, "until this stone was discovered, regular mortals...er, I mean, no one had been able to read hieroglyphics for centuries. The written language of Egypt had been completely forgotten. Then an Englishman named Thomas Young proved that the Rosetta Stone's three languages all conveyed the same message. A Frenchman named Champollion took up the work and cracked the code of the hieroglyphics."

Sadie chewed her gum, clearly unimpressed. "What's it say, then?"

Julius shrugged. "Nothing important. it's basically a thank-you letter from some priests to King Ptolemy V. When it was first carved, the stone was no big deal. But over the centuries...over the centuries it has become a powerful symbol. Perhaps the most important connection between Ancient Egypt and the modern world. I was a fool not to realize its potential sooner."

His speech had lost Carter entirely, and apparently Dr Martin as well.

"Dr Kane?" He asked. "Are you quite all right?"

Julius breathed in deeply. "My apologies Dr Martin. I was just...thinking aloud. If I could have the glass removed? And if you could bring me the papers I asked for from your archives."

Dr Martin nodded. He pressed a code into a small remote control, and the front of the glass box clicked open.

"It will take a few minutes to retrieve the notes," Dr Martin said. "For anyone else, I would hesitate to grant unguarded access to the stone, as you've requested. I trust you'll be careful." He glanced at Carter and Sadie like they were troublemakers.

"We'll be careful," Julius promised.

As soon as Dr Martin's steps receded, Julis turned to his children with a frantic look in his eyes. "Children, this is very important. You have to stay out of this room."

He slipped his workbag off his shoulder and unzipped it just enough to pull out a bike chain and padlock. "Follow Dr Martin. You'll find his office at the end of the Great Court on the left. There's only one entrance. Once he's inside, wrap this around the door handles and lock it tight. We need to delay him."

"You want us to lock him in?!" Sadie asked, with no short amount of sudden interest and excitement. "Brilliant!"

"Dad," Carter said, "what's going on?"

"We don't have time for explanations," he said. "This will be our only chance. They're coming."

"Who's coming?" Sadie asked.

"He took Sadie by the shoulders. "Sweetheart, I love you. And I'm sorry...I'm sorry for many things, but there's no time now. If this works, I promise I'll make everything better for all of us. Carter, you're my brave man. You have to trust me. Remember, lock up Dr Martin. Then stay out of this room!"

* * *

Chaining the curator's door was easy. But as soon as they'd finished, the siblings looked back the way they'd come and saw a blue light streaming form the Egyptian gallery, as if their had had installed a giant lowing aquarium.

Sadie locked eyes with Carter. "Honestly, do you have _any_ idea what he's up to?"

"None," Carter told her. "But he's been acting strange lately. Thinking a lot about Mom. He keeps her picture..." Carter didn't want to say anymore. Fortunately for him, Sadie nodded like she understood.

"What's in his workbag?" she asked him.

"I don't know. He told me never to look."

Sadie raised an eyebrow. "And you never did? God, that is so like you, Carter. You're hopeless."

Carter had wanted to defend himself, but just then a tremor shook the floor.

Startled, Sadie grabbed Carter's arm. "He told us to stay put. I suppose you're going to follow that order too?"

Carter thought that order was sounding pretty good, but Sadie sprinted down the hall, and after a moment's hesitation, Carter ran after her.

* * *

When the two of them reached the entrance of the Egyptian gallery, they stopped dead in their tracks. Julius stood in front of the Rosetta Stone with his back to them. A blue circle glowed on the floor around him, as if someone had switched on hidden neon tubes in the floor.

Julius had thrown off his over coat. His workbag lay open at his feet, revealing a wooden box about two feet long, painted with Egyptian images.

"What's he holding?" Sadie whispered to her brother. "Is that a boomerang?"

As stupid as it sounded for a grown man to be holding something like that, it was true. When Julius raised his hand, he was brandishing a curved white stick that did, indeed, look like a boomerang. But instead of throwing the stick, he thouched it to the Rosetta Stone. Sadie caught her breath. Julius began _writing_ on the stone. Wherever the boomerang made contact, glowing blue lines appeared on the granite. Hieroglyphs.

It made no sense at all to Carter. How could he write glowing words with a stick? But the image was bright and clear, ram's horns above a box and an X.

"_Open_," Sadie murmured. Carter stared at her, because it sounded like she had just translated the word, which should have been impossible. Carter had been with their father for years, and he could only read a few hieroglyphs. They were seriously hard to learn.

Julius raised his arms. He chanted: "_Woo-seer, i-ei_." And two more hieroglyphic symbols burned blue against the surface of the Rosetta Stone. It appeared to be, from left to right, an eye with a thin throne facing the side on top, a man that looked to be in a sitting position with his knees pointing diagonally left facing the left. A feather with two stems, a feather with a single stem, and the bottom half of an X.

As stunned as Carter was, he recognized the first symbol. It was the name of the Egyptian god of the dead.

"Wo-seer," Carter whispered. He had never heard it pronounced that way, but he knew what it meant. "Osiris."

"_Osiris come,_" Sadie said, as if in a trance. Then her eyes widened. "No!" She screamed. "Dad, no!"

Julius turnd in surprise. He started to say, "Children-" but it was too late. The ground rumbled. The blue light turned to a searing white, and the Rosetta Stone exploded.

* * *

When Carter regained consciousness, the first thing he heard was laughter- horrible, gleeful laughter mixed with the blare of the museum's security alarms.

Carter felt like he had just been run over by a tractor. He sat up slowly, dazed, and spat a piece of the Rosetta Stone out of his mouth. The gallery was in ruins. Waves of fire rippled in the pools along teh floor. Giant statues had toppled. Sarcophagi had been knocked off their pedestals. Pieces of the Rosetta Stone had exploded outwards with such force that they'd embedded themselves in the columns, the walls, the other exhibits.

Sadie was passed out next to Carter, but she looked unharmed. He shook her shoulder, and she grunted. "Ugh."

In front of them, where the Rosetta Stone had been, stood a smoking, sheared-off pedestal. The floor was blackened in a starburst pattern, except for the glowing blue circle around their father.

He was facing their direction, but he was definitely not looking at them. A bloody cut ran across his scalp. He gripped the boomerang tightly.

To his right, strangely, was a young man, who appeared to be unconscious. Carter vaguely noticed that he had golden blonde hair, that seemed to quiver oddly in the light breeze that went through the building. He couldn't see his face however.

Something stood between Julius and his two children. At first, Carter could barely make it out- just a flicker of heat. But as he concentrated, it took on a vague human form- the fiery outline of a man.

He was taller than Julius, and his laugh cut through Carter like a chainsaw.

"Well done," he said to Julius. "Very well done, Julius."

"You were not summoned!" Julius' voice trembled. He held up the boomerang, but the fiery man flicked one finger, and the stick flew from Julius' hand, shattering against the wall.

"I am never summoned, Julius," the man purred. "But when you open a door, you must be prepared for guests to walk through."

"Back to the Duat!" Julius roared. "I have the power of the Great King!"

"Oh, scary," the fiery man said with amusement. "And even if you knew how to use that power, which you do not, he was never my match. Now you will share his fate."

Carter could not make sense of anything, but he knew that he had to help Julius. He tried to pick up the nearest chunk of stone, but he was so terrified that his fingers felt frozen and numb. His hands were useless.

Julius shot him a silent look of warning: _Get out_. Carter realized he was intentionally keeping the fiery man's back to them, hoping Sadie and he would escape unnoticed.

Sadie was still groggy. Carter managed to drag her behind a column, into the shadows. When she started to protest, Carter clamped his hand over her mouth. That woke her up. She saw what was happening and stopped fighting.

Alarms blared. Fire circled around the doorways of the gallery. The guards had to be on their way, but Carter wasn't sure if that was a good thing for them.

Julius crouched to the floor, keeping his eyes on his enemy, and opened his painted wooden box. He brought out a small rod like a ruler. He muttered something under his breath and the rod elongated into a wooden staff as tall as he was.

Sadie made a squeaking sound. Neither of them could believe their eyes, but things only got weirder.

Julius threw his staff at the fiery man's feet, and it changed into an enormous serpent- ten feet long and as big as Carter- with coppery scales and glowing red eyes. It lunged at the fiery man, who effortlessly grabbed the serpent by its neck. The man's hand burst into white-hot flames, and the snake burned to ashes.

"An old trick, Julius," the fiery man chided.

Julius glanced at his children, practically screaming at them to run with his look. Part of Carter refused to believe any of it was real. He thought perhaps he was unconscious, having a nightmare. Next to him, Sadie picked up a chunk of stone.

"How many?" Julius asked rather quickly, trying to keep the fiery man's attention. "How many did I release?"

"Why, all five," the man said, as if explaining something to a child. "You _should_ know we're a package eal, Julius. Soon I'll release even more, and they'll be very grateful. I shall be named king once more!"

"The Demon days," Julius said. "They'll stop you before it's too late."

At the word 'Demon' the blonde boy began to stir, as what appeared to be energy danced along his body. However the fiery man did not notice.

The fiery man laughed. "You think the House can stop me? Those old fools can't even stop arguing among themselves. Now let the story be told anew. And this time you shall _never_ rise!"

The fiery man waved his hand. The blue circle at Julius' feet went dark. He grabbed for his toolbox, but it skittered across the floor.

"Goodbye, Osiris," the fiery man said. With another flick of his hand, he conjured a glowing coffin around Julius. At first it was transparent, but as he struggedled and pounded against its sides, the coffin became more and more solid, a golden Egyptian sarcophagus inlaid with jewels. Julius caught his son's eyes one last time, and mouth the word _Run!_ before the coffin sank into the floor, as if the ground had turned to water.

"dad!" Carter screamed.

Sadie threw her stone, but it sailed harmlessly through the fiery man's head.

He turned, and for a single, terrible moment his face appeared in the flames. What they saw made no sense. It was as if someone had superimposed two different faces on top of each other- one almost human, with pale skin, cruel, angular features and glowing red eyes, the other like an animal with dark fur and sharp fangs. Worse than a god or a wolf or a lion- some animal neither had seen before. The red eyes stared at them, and they both knew they were going to die.

Behind the siblings, heavy footsteps echoed on the marble floor of the Great Court. Voices were barking orders. The security guards, maybe the police- but they'd never get there in time.

The fiery man lunged at the two. A few inches from Carter's face, something shoved him backwards. The air sparked with electricity. The amulets around their necks grew uncomfortably hot.

The fiery man hissed, regarding Carter more carefully. "So...it's _you_."

The building shook again. At the opposite end of the room, part of the wall exploded in a brilliant flash of light. Two people stepped through the gap- the man and the girl they'd seen at Cleopatra's Needle, their robes swirling around them. Both of them held staves.

At that point, the red energy that was swirling around the blonde on the ground shot into his body. The blonde slowly stood up, looking at the fiery man with calm, but dangerous cerulean blue eyes. He appeared to be 14. He wore what looked like a headband with a meal plate on it: a whirlpool symbol engraved into it. Three whisker marks adorned each of his cheeks, and he stood proud. He wore a pure white cloak that covered his entire body, so neither Sadie nor Carter knew if he was wearing anything underneath.

Sadie blushed at his appearance. Carter looked grateful, but also afraid slightly, because of the fiery man and girl that had just entered looked at the blonde in confusion. He opened his mouth, and spoke with a voice that sounded hardened by war...not a voice that someone who looked 14 should have. "Leave, before I show you how I earned the title 'Slayer of the Ninth Hell.'" The blonde ordered. The man's eyes widened, as if in realization.

The fiery man- Set- turned and his eyes widened upon seeing the blonde. He took a step back, a small smirk on his lips, then looked at Carter and snarled. "Soon, boy."

Then the entire room erupted into flames. A blast of head sucked all the air of out Sadie, Carter, and the blonde's lungs. The blonde collapsed in front of Sadie and Carter, while the two crumpled to the floor.

The last thing Carter could remember, was the man with the forked beard and the girl in blue were standing over the three of them. They heard the security guards running and shouting, getting closer. The girl crouched over Carter and drew a long curved knife from her belt.

"We must act quickly," she told the man.

"No," he said with some reluctance...and a little fear. His thick accent sounded French. "We must be sure before we destroy the children...and this 'Slayer Of The Ninth Hell' must not be harmed, or we are all doomed."

Carter slowly closed his eyes, and drifted into unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2: Truth? Lies? Awake?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kane Chronicles (First ever Naruto/Kane Chronicles Crossover on this site!)**

**Honest to god (read as _gods_), I am surprised as fuck that nobody before me did a Naruto/Kane Chronicles crossover. It's like, if people do Percy Jackson Crossovers, why not Kane Chronicles? But I digress.**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Truth? Lies? Awake?**

When Sadie had woken up, the police were rushing around, as was to be expected. They separated her from Carter, which she actually didn't particularly mind. She thought he was a massive pain in her ass. But then they locked her with the unconscious blonde in the curator's office for _ages_. And they used _their_ bicycle chain to do it. _'Cretins,'_ Sadie thought.

She was shattered, of course. She had been knocked out by a fiery red bloke. She had watched her dad get packed in a sarcophagus and shot through the door. She tried tried to tell the police about all that, but did they care? No.

Worst of all: she had a lingering chill, as if someone was pushing ice-cold needles into the back of her neck. It had started when she looked at those blue glowing words Julius had drawn on the Rosetta Stone and she _knew_ what they meant. '_A family disease, perhaps?'_ She mused. _'Can knowledge of boring Egyptian stuff be hereditary? With my luck.'_

Long after her gum had gone stale, a policewoman finally retrieved her from the curator's office, along with the handsome, in her opinion, unconscious blonde. She asked Sadie no questions. She just trundled the two of them into a police car and took her home. Even then, she wasn't allowed to explain to her grandparents about what had happened. The policewoman just tossed the two into her room. So Sadie waited. And waited.

She didn't like waiting.

She paced the floor. Her room was nothing posh, just an attic space with a window and a bed and a desk. There wasn't much to do. Muffin, her cat, sniffed her legs and her tail puffed up like a bottlebrush. Sadie guessed that Muffin didn't like the smell of museums. The cat then bounced over to the blonde and sniffed. It hissed loudly, almost in worry, and disappeared under the bed.

Sadie blinked and then shrugged. She opened the door, but the policewoman was standing guard.

"The inspector will be with you in a moment," she told her. "Please stay inside."

She could see downstairs- just a glimpse of her grandfather pacing the room, wringing his hands, while Carter and a police inspector talked on the sofa. She couldn't make out what they were saying.

"Could I just use the loo?" Sadie asked the nice officer.

"No." She closed the door in Sadie's face. As if she might rig an explosion in the toilet.

Sadie dug out her iPod and scrolled through her playlist. Nothing struck her. She threw it on her bed, just by the blonde, in disgust. When she was too distracted for music, it was a very sad thing. She wondered why Carter got to talk to the police first. It wasn't fair.

She began to fiddle with the necklace that he father had given her. She had never been sure what the symbol meant. Carter's was obviously an eye, but hers looked a bit like an angel...or perhaps a killer alien robot.

_'Why on earth would Dad ask if I still had it?'_ she thought to herself. _'Of _course _I still have it. It's the only give he's ever given me. Well, except from Muffin, and with that damned cat's attitude I'm not sure she is actually a proper gift.'_

You see, Sadie had felt that Julius had practically abandoned her at the age of six. The necklace was the only link she had to him. On good days she would stare at it and remember him fondly. On bad days (which were sadly far more frequent) she would fling it across the room and stomp on it and cure him for not being around, which she found quite therapeutic. But in the end, she would always put it back on.

Sadie thought about this for another reason. At the museum- she was certain it was real- the necklace got _hotter_. She nearly took it off, but she couldn't help wondering if she was truly being protected by it somehow.

_"I'll make things right," _Julius had told them, with that same guilty look he often gave Sadie.

_'Well, colossal fail, Dad,' _Sadie thought bitterly.

"You shouldn't blame him," a voice said from behind. She whirled around, and a hot blush spread across her cheeks. The formerly unconscious blonde was now sitting up on her bed, the cloak still covering most of his body, except now she noticed he wore a rather large necklace, with 9 strange shapes- Magatama- running along the chord. The boy had golden blonde hair that looked soft despite being so spiky, kind cerulean blue eyes that warmed her from her head to toes, and a soft smile that made her feel happier immediately. And those whisker marks on his cheeks made him seem so...exotic.

"Uh..." Sadie said with most excellent vocabulary. She berated herself for being so stupid, and tried again. "When did you-"

"Wake up?" The blonde cut her off, much to her annoyance, but she couldn't stay mad, not when that smile was on his lips. "Around the time you started fiddling with your amulet."

"Amulet?" She asked and looked down. It didn't seem like an amulet to her.

He blinked, then shook his head. "I mean necklace."

"Oh," she said. "Then why didn't you say anything?"

"I didn't want to stop your train of thought," he said honestly. "You seemed quite deep in thought, seeing as you didn't notice me sitting up when you glanced at me."

Sadie had the decency to blush, then looked away. Her eyes ended up across her room and fixed on her desk.

_'No,' _she thought. _'Not going to do it.'_

But, unfortunately for her, she couldn't resist. She walked over and opened the drawer. She shoved aside a few old magazines, her stash of sweets, a stack of maths homework she'd forgotten to hand in and a few pictures of her and her friends Liz and Emma trying on ridiculous hats in Camden Market. And there, at the bottom of it all, was the picture of her mother.

Her grandparents had loads of pictures. They kept a shrine to Ruby- her mother- in the hall cupboard- her childhood artwork, her O-level results, her graduation picture from university, her favourite jewellery. It was quite mental in her opinion. She barely remembered her mother, after all, and nothing could change the fact that she was dead.

But Sadie did keep one picture. It was of her mother and her at their house in Los Angeles, just after she was born. Ruby stood out on the balcony, the Pacific Ocean behind her, holding a wrinkled pudgy lump of baby that would some day grow up to be the Sadie Kane that was known now. Baby Sadie was not much to look at, but her mother was gorgeous, even in shorts and a tattered T-shirt. Her eyes were deep blue. Her blonde hair was clipped back. Her skin was perfect. Quite depressing compared to Sadie's. People always said she looked at her, but Sadie couldn't get the spot off her own chin, much less look so mature and beautiful (in her opinion).

The photo fascinated her because she hardly remembered their lives together at all. But the main reason she'd kept the photo because of the symbol on Ruby's T-shirt: the hieroglyph for life- an ankh.

"Who is that?" The whiskered teen asked her, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. She hadn't even heard him move!

"My mother," she said in a depressed tone.

"Dead I take it," he said bluntly. Sadie nodded somberly. "How long?"

"6 years," Sadie replied. "I was 6 at the time."

"I'm sorry to hear," he told her honestly. "She seems like she meant a lot to you, despite being so young."

"She did," Sadie agreed.

"Your very lucky to have had such a beautiful mother," he said. "I suppose now I know where you get that beautiful hair of yours from, right?"

Sadie blushed heatedly. Yeah, boys at school had complimented her plenty of times, but they usually made comments about her body, which infuriated her to no end. But the blonde had made a completely sincere comment about her hair, which was one of the few things she wouldn't consider attractive about herself.

"Th-thanks," she muttered, blushing hotly.

The blonde simply nodded, still looking at the picture. "An ankh...symbol for life," he said. "Ironic for someone who is dead."

Sadie couldn't stop the hollow chuckle that came out. "Yeah..." Sadie agreed with him. Her dead mother wearing the symbol for life? Nothing could've been sadder. But she smiled at the camera as if she knew a secret. As if Julius and her were sharing a private joke.

Something tugged at the back of her mind. That stocky man in the trench coat- Amos- who'd been arguing with Julius across the streed- he'd said something about Per Ankh.

Had he meant _ankh_ as in the symbol for life and, if so, what was a _per_? She guessed he didn't mean pear as in the fruit. She frowned in frustration. Though she did have an eerie feeling that if she saw the words _Per Ankh _written in hieroglyphics that she would know what they meant.

"Penny for your thoughts?" The blonde spoke.

"What Per Ankh?" She muttered.

"Written in hieroglyphs?" He asked her. She was surprised that he knew what she wanted, but she nodded. "Got a pencil?" Sadie quickly fished out a pencil from her drawer, and turned over some homework. She handed him the pencil, and waited.

Just as he touched pencil to paper, the bedroom door opened. "Miss Kane?"

Sadie whirled, while the blonde boy put the pencil down, turning to look.

A police inspector stood frowning in the doorway. "What are you two doing?"

"I was helping her with some Maths," the blonde lied smoothly, and Sadie had to suppress a grin.

The ceiling was quite low, so the inspector had to stoop to come in. He wore a lint-coloured suit that matched his grey hair and his ashen face. "Now then, Sadie. I'm Chief Inspector Williams. Let's have a chat, shall we? Sit down."

She didn't sit, and neither did the inspector, which must've annoyed him. It's hard to in charge when you're hunched over like Quasimodo.

"And you sir?" The inspector glanced at the blonde. "Who are you?"

"I am Uzuma..." the blonde cursed. "No sorry, that should be backwards. I am Naruto Uzumaki. A pleasure, Inspector Williams."

"Yes," the inspector responded. "Will you sit?"

Naruto shook his head. "After being unconscious as long as I have, stretching my leg muscles will do me good."

The inspector nodded in acceptance, then looked at Sadie again. "Tell me everything, please," he said, "from the time your father came round to get you."

"I already told the police at the museum."

"Again, if you don't mind."

So she told him everything. Why not? His left eyebrow crept higher and higher as she told him strange parts like the glowing letters and the serpent staff.

He then looked to Naruto. "And you? Where do you come into the story?"

Naruto shrugged. "I appeared the same time as the fiery man, partially conscious. It wasn't until after he had sent Sadie's father through the floor that I appeared, as Sadie already said."

The inspector sighed. "Well, Sadie, Naruto," Inspector Williams said. "You've both quite the imagination."

Naruto remained silent, and smirked at what Sadie said next. "I'm not lying, Inspector. And I think your eyebrow is trying to escape."

He tried to look at his own eyebrows, then scowled. "Now, Sadie, I'm sure this is very hard on you. I understand you want to protect your father's reputation. But he's gone now-"

"You mean through the floor in a coffin," she insisted. "He's _not_ dead."

"Sarcophagus," Naruto cut in, getting a look from Sadie and the Inspector. "It was a Sarcophagus."

Inspector williams spread his hands. "Be that as it may, it makes little difference-" Naruto snorted,bu the inspector continued. "Sadie, I'm very sorry. But we must find out why he did this act of...well..."

"Act of _what_?" Sadie asked in a very dangerous tone.

He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Your father destroyed priceless artefacts and apparently killed himself in the process. We'd very much like to know why."

Sadie stared at him. "Are you saying my father's a terrorist. Are you _mad?_"

"We've made calls to some of your father's associates. I understand his behaviour had become erratic since your mother's death. He'd become withdrawn and obsessive in his studies, spending more and more time in Egypt-"

"He's an _Egyptologist_! You should be looking for him, not asking stupid questions!"

"I concur," Naruto added. "You have no solid evidence that Sadie's father committed any sort of crime. The evidence points towards it, yes, but you have not appeared to considered that someone broke in through the window, caused the explosion, then kidnapped Dr Kane."

The inspector held back a snort. "Highly unlikely. Explain the fiery man and sarcophagus described by Miss Sadie and yourself."

Naruto sent a apologetic look to Sadie. "A mirage," he spoke. "We all know heat can mess with your head, we may have very well imagined the fiery man. All I know is I was unconscious until I began to slowly wake up with Julius to my right."

The inspector chose to ignore Naruto and looked to Sadie. "Sadie," he said, and they could hear in his voice that he was resisting the urge to strange the two of them. Sadie got that a lot from adults, but Naruto simply smirked as if this was the most fun he'd ever had. "There are extremist groups in Egypt that object to Egyptian artefacts being kept in other countries' museums. These people might have approached your father. Perhaps in his state, your father became an easy target for them. If you've heard him mention any names-"

Sadie stormed past Inspector Williams, so angry she could hardly think. Naruto frowned at her state, placing a hand on her shoulder supportively. She didn't blush, but was grateful. Sadie refused to believe her father was dead. No, no, no! And a terrorist? Please. _'Why do adults have to be so thick?' _She thought in anger. _'They ALWAYS say "tell the truth", and when you do they don't believe you! What;s the point!'_

She stared down at the dark street. Suddenly that cold tingly feeling got worse than ever. She focused on the dead tree where she'd met Julius earlier. Standing there now, in the dim light of the streetlamp, looking up at her, was the pudgy bloke in the black trench coat and the round glasses and the fedora- the man Julius had called Amons.

She supposed that Amos should've been threatening, seeing as he was staring up at her in the dark of night. But his expression was full of concern. And he looked _so _familiar to her. It was driving her mad that she couldn't remember why.

Behind her, the Inspector cleared his throat. "Sadie, no one blames you for the attack on the museum. We understand you were dragged into this against your will."

She whirled on him again, turning away from the window. "Against my will? I chained the curator in his office?"

Sadie could have sworn she heard Naruto murmur. "Not bad...gotta use that sometime."

The inspector's eyebrow started to creep up again. "Be that as it may, surely you didn't understand what your father meant to do. Perhaps your brother was involved?"

She snorted. "Carter? Please."

"So you are determined to protect him as well. You consider him a proper brother, do you?"

Naruto's eyes narrowed dangerously, but Sadie's gaze was far more destructive. She couldn't believe the nerve of this man! She wanted to smack him in the face. "What's that suppose to mean? Because he doesn't _look _like me?"

The inspector blinked. "I only meant-"

"I _know _what you meant. Of course he's my brother!"

Inspector Williams held up his hands apologetically, but Sadie was still seething. As much as Carter annoyed her, she absolutely hated it when people assumed they weren't related, or looked at her father askance when he said the three of us were a family- like they'd done something wrong. Stupid Dr Martin at the museum. Inspector Williams. It happened every time Carter, Sadie and their father were all together. _Every_ single time.

"I'm sorry, Sadie," the inspector said. "I only wanted to make sure we separate the innocent from the guilty. It will go much easier for everyone if you cooperate. Any information. Anything your father said. People he might've mentioned."

"Amos," Sadie blurted out, mostly to see his reaction, partly curious. "He met a man named Amos."

Inspector Williams sighed. "Sadie, he couldn't have done. Surely you know that. We spoke with Amos not one hour ago, on the phone from his home in New York."

He sin't in New York!" Sadie insisted. "He's right-"

She glanced out of the window and Amos was gone.

"That's not possible," she said.

"Exactly," the inspector said.

"But he was here!" She exclaimed. "Who is he? One of Dad's colleagues? How did you know to call him?"

"Really, Sadie. This acting must stop."

"_Acting__?_" She asked with no hint of anger to her tone.

"Enough," Naruto said, which immediately stopped that part of the conversation. "Inspector Williams, we did not come here to discuss how Amos was here and how he may not be here. We are here to discuss the matter of Julius. And you have the audacity, to think this young, pure, beautiful girl is _lying_ about what happened to her own father?" Sadie blushed at the complement.

The inspector blinked. "I only-"

"I know what you want, Williams," Naruto said in an ice cold tone. "We are done here."

"It does not matter," Williams said. "We've already had the truth from Carter. I didn't want to upset you, but he told us everything. He understands there's no point protecting Julius Kane now. You might as well help us, and there will be no charges against you."

Naruto looked into the Inspector's eye and saw no honesty in what he said. "Your lying Williams. You are a horrible liar."

"You shouldn't lie to children!" Sadie screamed at him, hoping her voice carried all the way downstairs. "Carter would never say a word against Dad, and neither will I!"

The inspector didn't even have the decency to look embarrassed.

He crossed his arms. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Sadie, Naru-"

"Do not refer to me by name," he said coldly. "You have no right."

The inspector blinked. "Very well, Mr Uzumaki. I'm afraid it's time we went downstairs...to discuss consequences with your grandparents."

Naruto looked at the inspector with a cold gaze that made the man flinch. "Then lead the way _Inspector Williams_," He said in a plainly sarcastic voice, that showed he didn't care. It brought a smile to Sadie's lips.


	3. Chapter 3: Kidnapping?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kane Chronicles (Yet...)**

**Wondering who people want Walt to be with now that I'm having Naruto with Sadie. Post a comment telling me who. If you are one of those people that think Sadie should always be with Walt, dont bother.**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Kidnapping?**

Sadie just loved family meetings. Very cosy, with the Christmas garlands around the fireplace and a nice pot of tea and a detective from Scotland Yard ready to arrest you.

Carter slumped on the sofa, cradling Julius' workbag. Sadie vaguely wondered why the police had let him keep it. It should have been evidence surely. But it looked like the inspector didn't even know it was there. Out the corner of her eye, she noticed Naruto follow her gaze and smirk knowingly.

Carter looked absolutely awful. The boy had never been in a proper school, and dressed like a junior professor, showing his little sense of fashion. That didn't mean he looked back. He was reasonably tall and fit and his hair was okay He had Julius' eyes, and Sadie's friends Liz and Emma had even told her from his pictures that he was _hot_ which she had to take with a grain of salt. Reasons being (a) he was her brother, and (b) her friends were a bit crazed. When it came to clothes, Carter would most likely never have a good sense of fashion.

At any rate, Sadie shouldn't have been too hard on him. He was taking Julius' disappearance far worse than she was.

Their grandparents sat on either side of Carter, looking quite nervous. The pot of tea and a plate of biscuits sat on the table, but no one was having any...until Naruto entered the room. He immediately walked over and ate a biscuit (which rather shocked Sadie as the biscuits were horrid) before sitting himself on the ground, rather close to them. Chief Inspector Williams ordered Sadie into the only free chair. Then he paced in front of the fireplace importantly. Two more police stood by the front door- the woman from earlier and a big bloke who kept eyeing the biscuits.

"Mr and Mrs Faust," Inspector Williams said, "I'm afraid we have three uncooperative children."

"I'm not a kid you prick," Naruto mumbled, though the inspector ignored him.

Mrs Faust fidgeted with the trim of her dress. It was hard to believe she was related to Sadie and Carter's mother. She was frail and colourless, like a stick person really, while Ruby in the photos always looked so happy and full of life. "They're just children," she managed. "Surely you can't blame them."

"_Pah!_" Mr Faust said. "This is ridiculous, Inspector. They aren't responsible!" He glanced at Naruto. "At least I'm sure Carter and Sadie aren't."

Mr Faust was a former rugby plater. He had beefy arms, a belly much too big for his shirt and his eyes sunk deep in his face, as if someone had punched them (as a matter of fact, Julius _had _punched them some years ago, but that is another story). Mr Faust was quite scary-looking. Usually people got out of his way, but Inspector Williams didn't seem impressed.

"Mr Faust," he said, "what do you imagine the morning headlines will read? 'British Museum attacked. Rosetta Stone destroyed.' Your son-in-law -"

"_Former _son-in-law," Mr Faust corrected.

"- was most likely vaporized in the explosion, or he ran off, in which case-"

"He didn't run off!" Sadie shouted at him.

"We need to know here he is," the inspector continued. "And the only witnesses, your grandchildren and the blonde boy, refuse to tell me the truth."

"We _did _tell you the truth," Carter said. "Dad isn't dead. He sank through the floor." Sadie nodded in agreement with her brother, but Naruto kept his face impassive.

Inspector Williams glanced at Mr Faust, as if to say, _'There, you see?' _Then he turned to Carter. "Young man, your father has committed a criminal act. He's left you behind to deal with the consequences-"

"That's not true!" Sadie practically screamed, her voice trembling with rage. She couldn't believe that her father would intentionally leave them at the mercy of police, of course. But the idea of him abandoning her...well, that was a very sore subject for her.

"Dear, please," Mrs Faust told her, the inspector is only doing his job,"

"Badly!" Sadie said.

"Let's all have some tea," she suggested.

"No!" Carter and Sadie yelled at once, which made Sadie feel bad for her grandmother, who practically wilted into the sofa.

"I'd love some," Naruto said with a charming smile that brought a blush to Sadie's cheeks. Gran immediately brightened up and poured the blonde a cup of tea, who thanked her before taking a sip.

"We _can _charge you," the inspector warned, trying to gain power back in the room. "We can and we will-"

He froze. Then he blinked several times, as if he'd forgotten what he was doing.

Mr Faust frowned. "_Er, _Inspector?"

"Yes..." Chief Inspector Williams murmured dreamily. He reached in his pocket and took out two little blue booklet- American passports. He threw one on Carter's lap, and the other at Naruto, who caught it easily.

"You're being deported," the inspector announced. "You're to leave the country within twenty-four hours. If we need to question you further, you'll be contacted through the FBI."

Carter's mouth fell open. He looked at Sadie, and she instantly knew she wasn't imagining how odd it was. The inspector had completely changed direction. He had been about to arrest the three of them. She was sure of it. And then, out of the blue, he was deporting Carter and Naruto? She didn't even know where Naruto was from. Even the other police officers looked confused at this turn of events.

"Sir?" the policewoman asked. "Are you sure-"

"Quiet, Linley. The two of you may go."

The cops hesitated until Williams made a shooing motion with his hand. They left, closing the door behind them.

"Hold on," Carter said. "My father's disappeared, and you want me to leave the country?"

"Your father is either dead or a fugitive, son," the inspector said. "Deportation is the kindest option. It's already been arranged."

"With whom?" Mr Faust demanded. "Who authorized this?"

"With..." the inspector got that funny blank look again. "With the proper authorities. Believe me, it's better than prison."

Carter looked absolutely devastated, too much so to speak, but before Sadie could feel sorry for him, Inspector Williams turned to her. "You, too, miss."

He might as well have hit her with a sledgehammer.

"You're deporting _me_?" she asked. "I live here!"

"You're an American citizen. And under the circumstances it's best for you to return home."

She just stared at him, her mouth wide open. She couldn't remember any home except the flat she lived in. Her friends at school, her room, _everything _she knew was here. "Where am I supposed to go?"

"Inspector," Mrs Faust spoke, her voice trembling. "this isn't fair. I can't believe-"

"I'll give you some time to say goodbye," the inspector interrupted. Then he frowned as if baffled by his own actions. "I- I must be going."

It made no sense, and the inspector seemed to realize it, but he walked to the front door anyway. When he opened it, Sadie and Carter almost jumped out their seats, because the man in black, Amos, was standing there. He'd lost his trench coat and hat somewhere, but was still wearing the same pinstripe suit and round glasses. His hair was braided glittered with gold beads.

Sadie expected the inspector to say something, or express surprise, but he didn't even acknowledge Amos. He walked right past him and into the night.

Amos came inside and closed the door. Mr and Mrs Faust stood up.

"You," Mr Faust growled. "I shouldn't known. If I was younger, I would beat you to a pulp."

"Hello, Mr and Mrs Faust," Amos said. He looked at Carter and Sadie as if they were problems to be solved, but also shot a weary glance at Naruto. "It's time we had a talk."

* * *

Amos made himself right at home. He flopped onto the sofa and poured himself tea. He munched on a biscuit, which Sadie still believed was quite dangerous, but he and Naruto kept eating as if they didn't have a care in the world.

She thought Mr Faust's head would explode. His face went bright red. He came up behind Amos and raised his hand as if he were about to smack him, but Amos kept munching on his biscuit.

"Please, sit down," he told them.

And they all sat, except Naruto who knelt by the biscuits, sipping his tea every so often. It was the strangest thing- as if they'd been waiting for his order. Even Mr Faust dripped his hand and moved round he sofa. He sat next to Amos with a disgusted sigh.

Amos sipped his tea and glanced at Naruto with something akin to respect. He then regarded Sadie with some displeasure. _'That's not fair,' _Sadie thought. _'I don't look **that **bad, considering what we've been through.' _Then he looked at Carter and grunted.

"Terrible timing," he muttered. "But there's no other way. The three will have to come with me."

"Excuse me?" Sadie said. "I'm not going anywhere with some strange man with biscuit on his face!"

Naruto raised an eyebrow, clearly curious as to who she was talking about. Both Naruto and Amos did in fact have biscuit crumbs on their face, but neither bothered to check.

"I'm no stranger, Sadie," he said. "Don't you remember?"

Sadie got the strangest feeling when she heard him talk in such a familiar way. She felt she _should _know him. She looked at Carter, but he seemed just as mystified as she was.

"No, Amos," Mrs Faust said, trembling. "You can't take Sadie. We had an agreement."

"That agreement kind of went to shit now, didn't it?" Naruto said, earning a gasp from Sadie and Carter at his choice of language. "You can't really care for Sadie any longer with this situation. The best choice all of us have is to go with Amos."

"Why should we go anywhere with him?" Carter asked. "He nearly got into a fight with Dad!"

Amos looked at the workbag in Carter's lap. "I see you kept your father's bag. That's good. You'll need it. As for getting into fights, Julius and I did that quite a lot. If you didn't notice, Carter, I was trying to _stop _him from doing something rash. If he'd listened to me, we wouldn't be in this situation."

Naruto nodded in agreement. Sadie had no clue what he was talking about, but Mr Faust seemed to understand.

"You and your superstitions!" he said. "I told you we want none of it."

Amos pointed to the back patio. Through the glass doors, you could see the lights shining on the Thames. It was quite a nice view at night, when you couldn't notice how run-down some of the buildings were. "Superstition, is it?" Amos asked. "And yet you found a place to live on the _east _bank of the river."

Mr Faust's ears turned even redder. "That was Ruby's idea. Thought it would protect us. But she was wrong about many things, wasn't she? She trusted Julius and you, for one!"

Amos looked unfazed. He had an interesting scent- like old timey spices, copal and amber, like the incense shops in Covent Garden.

He finished his tea and looked straight at Sadie and Carter's grandmother. "Mrs Faust, you know what's begun. The police are the least of your worries."

Gran swallowed. "You..._you _changed that inspector's mind. You made him deport Sadie."

"It was that or see the children arrested," Amos said.

"Hang on," Saide said. "You changed Inspector Williams's mind? How?"

Amos shrugged. "It's not permanent. In fact we should get to New York in the next hour or so before Inspector Williams begins to wonder why he let you go."

Carter laughed incredulously. "You can't get to New York from London in a hour. Not even the fastest plane—"

"No," Amos agreed. "Not a plane." He turned back to Gran as if everything had been settled. "Mrs Faust, Carter and Sadie have only one safe option. You know that. They'll come to the mansion in Brooklyn. I can protect them there."

"You've got a mansion," Carter said. "In Brooklyn."

Amos gave him an amused smile. "The family mansion. You'll be safe there."

"But our dad—"

"Is beyond your help for now," Amos said sadly. "I'm sorry, Carter. I'll explain later, but Julius would want you to be safe. For that, we must move quickly. I'm afraid I'm all you've got."

_'That was a bit harsh_,' Sadie thought. Carter glanced at Gran and Gramps. Then he nodded glumly. He knew that they didn't want him around. He'd always reminded them of his dad. And yes, it was a stupid reason not to take in your grandson, but it was the truth.

Nobody saw Naruto's eyes narrow at the two elders, a dangerous look in them.

"Well, Carter can do what he wants," Sadie said. "But I live here. And I'm not going off with some stranger, am I?"

Sadie looked at Gran for support, but she was staring at the lace doilies on the table as if they were suddenly quite interesting.

"Gramps, surely..."

But he wouldn't meet my eyes either. He turned to Amos. "You can get them out of the country?"

"Hang on!" Sadie protested protested.

Naruto put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll be safer this way."

Amos stood and wiped the crumbs off his jacket. He walked to the patio doors and stared out at the river. "The police will be back soon. Tell them anything you like. They won't find us."

"You're going to kidnap us?" Sadie asked, stunned. She looked at Carter. "Do you believe this?"

Carter shouldered the workbag. Then he stood like he was ready to go. Possibly he just wanted to be out of Gran and Gramps's flat. "How do you plan to get to New York in an hour?" he asked Amos. "You said, not a plane."

"No," Amos agreed. He put his finger to the window and traced something in the condensation— another hieroglyph.

"A boat," Sadie said—then realized that she had translated aloud, which she was _not_ supposed to be able to do.

Amos peered at her over the top of his round glasses. "How did you—"

"I mean that last bit looks like a boat," she said quickly. "But that can't be what you mean. That's ridiculous."

"Look!" Carter cried.

Sadie pressed in next to him at the patio doors. Down at the quayside, a boat was docked. But not a regular boat, not a regular boat at all. It was an Egyptian reed boat, with two torches burning in the front, and a big rudder in the back. A figure in a black trench coat and hat—possibly Amos's—stood at the tiller.

Sadie, for once, was at a loss for words.

Naruto grinned. "Always fun seeing the shock on people's faces when stuff like this happened."

"We're going in that," Carter said. "To Brooklyn."

"We'd better get started," Amos said.

Sadie whirled back to her grandmother. "Gran, please!"

She brushed a tear from her cheek. "It's for the best, my dear. You should take Muffin."

"Ah, yes," Amos said. "We can't forget the cat."

He turned towards the stairs. As if on cue, Muffin raced down in a leopard-spotted streak and leaped into Sadie's arms. The girl was shocked. Muffin _never _did that.

"Who are you?" She asked Amos. It was clear she was running out of options, but she at least wanted answers. "We can't just go off with some stranger."

"I'm not a stranger." Amos smiled at me. "I'm family."

And suddenly Sadie remembered his face smiling down at her, saying, "Happy birthday, Sadie." A memory so distant, it was almost forgotten.

"Uncle Amos?" She asked hazily.

"That's right, Sadie," he said. "I'm Julius's brother. Now come along. We have a long way to go."

Naruto laughed loudly. "Welcome to the world of Egyptian mythology," he cackled. "There is no known exit, so enjoy your stay!"


	4. Chapter 4: Welcome To Brooklyn House

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto Or Kane Chronicles...though I wish I did**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Welcome to Brooklyn House**

The three teens followed Amos down to the weird boat docked at the quayside. Carter cradled his father's workbag under his arm. He still couldn't believe he was gone. Carter felt guilty leaving London without him, but he believed Amos about one thing: right now Julius was beyond their help. Carter didn't trust Amos, not at all, but he figured if he wanted to find out what had happened to Julius, he was going to have to go along with him. He was the only one who seemed to know anything.

Amos stepped aboard the reed boat. Naruto jumped right on, then offered a hand to Sadie. She blushed heatedly and took his hand, getting on. Carter grew angry at this- was this what elder brother's felt like when they needed to protect their siblings?- but Carter hesitated He had seen boats like this on the Nile before, and they never seemed very sturdy. It was basically woven together from coils of plant fiber—like a giant floating rug. He figured the torches at the front couldn't be a good idea, because if they didn't sink, they'd surely burn. At the back, the tiller was manned by a little guy wearing Amos's black trench coat and hat. The hat was shoved down on his head so they couldn't see his face. His hands and feet were lost in the folds of the coat.

"How does this thing move?" Carter asked Amos. "You've got no sail."

"Trust me." Amos offered his nephew a hand.

The night was cold, but when Carter stepped on board he suddenly felt warmer, as if the torchlight were casting a protective glow over them. In the middle of the boat was a hut made from woven mats. From Sadie's arms, Muffin sniffed at it and growled.

"Take a seat inside," Amos suggested. "The trip might be a little rough."

Naruto shrugged. "I'll stand, never was one for sitting down."

"I'll stand too, thanks." Sadie nodded at the little guy in back. "Who's your driver?"

Amos acted as if he hadn't heard the question. "Hang on, everyone!" He nodded to the steersman, and the boat lurched forward.

The feeling was hard to describe. You know that tingle in the pit of your stomach when you're on a roller coaster and it goes into free fall? It was kind of like that, except they weren't falling, and the feeling didn't go away. The boat moved with astounding speed. The lights of the city blurred, then were swallowed in a thick fog. Strange sounds echoed in the dark: slithering and hissing, distant screams, voices whispering in languages Carter didn't understand, but he heard Naruto speaking in a language he didn't know, and the voices stopped for an instant, before starting to talk again. The tingling turned to nausea. The sounds got louder, until Carter was about to scream myself. Then suddenly the boat slowed. The noises stopped, and the fog dissipated. City lights came back, brighter than before.

Above them loomed a bridge, much taller than any bridge in London. Carter's stomach did a slow roll. To the left, he saw a familiar skyline—the Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building.

"Impossible," he muttered. "That's New York."

Sadie looked as green as Carter felt. She was still cradling Muffin, whose eyes were closed. The cat seemed to be purring. "It can't be," Sadie said. "We only travelled a few minutes."

Naruto laughed loudly. "May wanna check again Sadie, because it's all real."

He was right. They were there, sailing up the East River, right under the Williamsburg Bridge. They glided to a stop next to a small dock on the Brooklyn side of the river. In front of them was an industrial yard filled with piles of scrap metal and old construction equipment. In the center of it all, right at the water's edge, rose a huge factory warehouse heavily painted with graffiti, the windows boarded up.

"That is not a mansion," Sadie said.

Naruto smirked. "Look again," Amos pointed to the top of the building.

"How...how did you..." Carter's voice failed him. He wasn't sure why he hadn't seen it before, but now it was obvious: a five-story mansion perched on the roof of the warehouse, like another layer of a cake. "You couldn't build a mansion up there!"

"Long story," Amos said. "But we needed a private location."

"And is this the east shore?" Sadie asked. "You said something about that in London—my grandparents living on the east shore."

Amos smiled. "Yes. Very good, Sadie. In ancient times, the east bank of the Nile was always the side of the living, the side where the sun rises. The dead were buried west of the river. It was considered bad luck, even dangerous, to live there. The tradition is still strong among...our people."

"Our people?" Carter asked, clearly confused. Naruto nodded solemnly, but Sadie muscled in with another question.

"So you can't live in Manhattan?" she asked.

Amos's brow furrowed as he looked across at the Empire State Building. "Manhattan has other problems. Other gods. It's best we stay separate."

"Other what?" Sadie demanded.

"Nothing." Amos walked past them to the steersman. He plucked off the man's hat and coat—and there was no one underneath. The steersman simply wasn't there. Amos put on his fedora, folded his coat over his arm, then waved toward a metal staircase that wound all the way up the side of the warehouse to the mansion on the roof.

Naruto chuckled. "Ah, reminds me of the good days."

"All ashore," he said. "And welcome to the Twenty-first Nome."

* * *

"Gnome?" Carter asked, as the group trailed up the stairs. "Like those little runty guys?"

Naruto gave him an 'are you an idiot?' look. "No, not Gnome. Those things are annoying."

"But Amos said—"

"Nome, n-o-m-e. As in a district, a region. The term is from ancient times, when Egypt was divided into forty-two provinces. Today, the system is a little different. We've gone global. The world is divided into three hundred and sixty nomes. Egypt, of course, is the First. Greater New York is the Twenty-first."

Sadie glanced at the two boys and twirled her finger around her temple.

"No, Sadie," Amos said without looking back. "I'm not crazy. There's much you need to learn."

They reached the top of the stairs. Looking up at the mansion, it was hard to understand what they was seeing. The house was at least fifty feet tall, built of enormous limestone blocks and steel-framed windows. There were hieroglyphs engraved around the windows, and the walls were lit up so the place looked like a cross between a modern museum and an ancient temple. But the weirdest thing was that if Carter glanced away, the whole building seemed to disappear. He tried it several times just to be sure. If he looked for the mansion from the corner of his eye, it wasn't there. He had to force my eyes to refocus on it, and even that took a lot of willpower.

He could of sworn he heard Naruto mutter. "Subtle Genjutsu, very clever..."

Amos stopped before the entrance, which was the size of a garage door—a dark heavy square of timber with no visible handle or lock. "Carter, after you."

"Um, how do I—"

"How do you think?"

Carter was about to suggest they ram Amos's head against it and see if that worked. Then he looked at the door again, and he had the strangest feeling. Carter stretched out his arm. Slowly, without touching the door, he raised his hand and the door followed the movement—sliding upward until it disappeared into the ceiling.

Sadie looked stunned. "How..."

"I don't know," Carter admitted, a little embarrassed. "Motion sensor, maybe?"

"Interesting." Amos sounded a little troubled. "Not the way I would've done it, but very good. Remarkably good."

"Not bad for a first timer," Naruto grunted.

"Thanks, I think." Carter chuckled nervously.

Sadie tried to go inside first, but as soon as she stepped on the threshold, Muffin wailed and almost clawed her way out of Sadie's arms.

Sadie stumbled backward. "What was that about, cat?"

"Oh, of course," Amos said. "My apologies." He put his hand on the cat's head and said, very formally, "You may enter."

"The cat needs permission?" Carter asked.

"Special circumstances," Amos said, which wasn't much of an explanation, but he walked inside without saying another word. They followed, and this time Muffin stayed quiet.

"Oh my god..." Sadie's jaw dropped. She craned her neck to look at the ceiling, and Carter thought the gum might fall out of her mouth.

"Yes," Amos said. "This is the Great Room."

Carter could see why he called it that. The cedar-beamed ceiling was four stories high, held up by carved stone pillars engraved with hieroglyphs. A weird assortment of musical instruments and Ancient Egyptian weapons decorated the walls. Three levels of balconies ringed the room, with rows of doors all looking out on the main area. The fireplace was big enough to park a car in, with a plasma-screen TV above the mantel and massive leather sofas on either side. On the floor was a snakeskin rug, except it was forty feet long and fifteen feet wide—bigger than any snake. Outside, through glass walls, they could see the terrace that wrapped around the house. It had a swimming pool, a dining area, and a blazing fire pit. And at the far end of the Great Room was a set of double doors marked with the Eye of Horus, and chained with half a dozen padlocks. Carter wondered what could possibly be behind them.

But the real showstopper was the statue in the center of the Great Room. It was thirty feet tall, made of black marble. Carter could tell it was of an Egyptian god because the figure had a human body and an animal's head—like a stork or a crane, with a long neck and a really long beak.

The god was dressed ancient-style in a kilt, sash, and neck collar. He held a scribe's stylus in one hand, and an open scroll in the other, as if he had just written the hieroglyphs inscribed there: an ankh— the Egyptian looped cross—with a rectangle traced around its top.

"That's it!" Sadie exclaimed. "Per Ankh."

Carter stared at her in disbelief. "All right, how you can read that?"

"I don't know," she said. "But it's obvious, isn't it? The top one is shaped like the floor plan of a house."

"How did you get that? It's just a box." The thing was, she was right. Carter recognized the symbol, and it was supposed to be a simplified picture of a house with a doorway, but that wouldn't be obvious to most people, especially someone who had absolutely no interest in Egyptian Mythology. But she was absolutely positive.

"It's a house," she insisted. "And the bottom picture is the ankh, the symbol for life. Per Ankh—the House of Life."

"Very good, Sadie." Amos looked impressed. "And this is a statue of the only god still allowed in the House of Life—at least, normally. Do you recognize him, Carter?"

Just then it clicked: the bird was an ibis, an Egyptian river bird. "Thoth," I said. "The god of knowledge. He invented writing."

"Indeed," Amos said.

Naruto walked to the statue and touched it's feet. Once again, he spoke quietly, although Carter was sure he heard him. "Your doing good for yourself friend...all famous now..."

"Why the animal heads?" Sadie asked. "All those Egyptian gods have animal heads. They look so silly.""

They don't normally appear that way," Amos said. "Not in real life."

"Real life?" Carter asked. "Come on. You sound like you've met them in person."

Amos's expression didn't reassure him. He looked as if he were remembering something unpleasant. "The gods could appear in many forms—usually fully human or fully animal, but occasionally as a hybrid form like this. They are primal forces, you understand, a sort of bridge between humanity and nature. They are depicted with animal heads to show that they exist in two different worlds at once. Do you understand?"

"Not even a little," Sadie said.

"Mmm." Amos didn't sound surprised. "Yes, we have much training to do. At any rate, the god before you, Thoth, founded the House of Life, for which this mansion is the regional headquarters. Or at least...it used to be. I'm the only member left in the Twenty-first Nome. Or I was, until you three came along."

"Hang on." Carter had so many questions he could hardly think where to start. "What is the House of Life? Why is Thoth the only god allowed here, and why are you—"

"Carter, I understand how you feel." Amos smiled sympathetically. "But these things are better discussed in daylight. You need to get some sleep, and I don't want you to have nightmares."

"You think I can sleep?"

"Mrow." Muffin stretched in Sadie's arms and let loose a huge yawn.

Amos clapped his hands. "Khufu!"

Carter thought he'd sneezed, because Khufu sounded like a weird name, but then a little dude about three feet tall with gold fur and a purple shirt came clambering down the stairs. It took Carter a second to realize it was a baboon wearing an L.A. Lakers jersey.

The baboon did a flip and landed in front of us. He showed off his fangs and made a sound that was half roar, half belch. His breath smelled like nacho-flavored Doritos.

All the dark skinned boy could think to say was, "The Lakers are my home team!"

The baboon slapped his head with both hands and belched again.

"Oh, Khufu likes you," Amos said. "You'll get along famously."

"Right." Sadie looked dazed. "You've got a monkey butler. Why not?"

Muffin purred in Sadie's arms as if the baboon didn't bother her at all.

"Agh!" Khufu grunted at me.

Amos chuckled. "He wants to go one-on-one with you, Carter. To, ah, see your game."

Carter shifted from foot to foot. "Um, yeah. Sure. Maybe tomorrow. But how can you understand—"

"Carter, I'm afraid you'll have a lot to get used to," Amos said. "But if you're going to survive and save your father, you have to get some rest."

"Sorry," Sadie said, "did you say 'survive and save our father'? Could you expand on that?"

"Tomorrow," Amos said. "We'll begin your orientation in the morning. Khufu, show them to their rooms, please."

"Agh-uhh!" the baboon grunted. He turned and waddled up the stairs. Unfortunately, the Lakers jersey didn't completely cover his multicolored rear.

They were about to follow when Amos said, "Carter, the workbag, please. It's best if I lock it in the library."

Carter hesitated. He had almost forgotten the bag on his shoulder, but it was all he had left of his father. He didn't even have his luggage because it was still locked up at the British Museum. Honestly, he'd been surprised that the police hadn't taken the workbag too, but none of them seemed to notice it.

"You'll get it back," Amos promised. "When the time is right."

He asked nicely enough, but something in his eyes told Carter that he really didn't have a choice.

Carter, reluctantly, handed over the bag. Amos took it gingerly, as if it were full of explosives.

"See you in the morning." He turned and strode toward the chained-up doors. They unlatched themselves and opened just enough for Amos to slip through without showing them anything on the other side. Then the chains locked again behind him.

Carter looked at Sadie, unsure what to do. He glanced at Naruto, but the blonde just kept looking at the statue of Thoth. He eventually drew himself away and followed Khufu up the stairs. Staying by themselves in the Great Room with the creepy statue of Thoth didn't seem like much fun, so Carter and Sadie followed Khufu up the stairs. Sadie and Carter got adjoining rooms on the third floor. Naruto followed Khufu to a bedroom on the other side of Sadie's room. Carter had to admit, they were way cooler than any place he'd ever stayed before.

He had my own kitchenette, fully stocked with his favorite snacks: ginger ale, Twix, and Skittles. It seemed impossible. How did Amos know what he liked? The TV, computer, and stereo system were totally high-tech. The bathroom was stocked with his regular brand of toothpaste, deodorant, everything. The king-size bed was awesome, too, though the pillow was a little strange. Instead of a cloth pillow, it was an ivory headrest like he'd seen in Egyptian tombs. It was decorated with lions and (of course) more hieroglyphs.

The room even had a deck that looked out on New York Harbor, with views of Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty in the distance, but the sliding glass doors were locked shut somehow. That was his first indication that something was wrong.

He turned to look for Khufu, but he was gone. The door to his room was shut. He tried to open it, but it was locked.

A muffled voice came from the next room. "Carter?"

"Sadie." He tried the door to her adjoining room, but it was locked too.

"We're prisoners," she said. "Do you think Amos...I mean, can we trust him?"

After all he'd seen today, I didn't trust anything, but Carter could hear the fear in Sadie's voice. It triggered an unfamiliar feeling in him, like he needed to reassure her. The idea seemed ridiculous. Sadie had always seemed so much braver than me—doing what she wanted, never caring about the consequences. He was the one who got scared. But right now, he felt like he needed to play a role he hadn't played in a long, long time: big brother.

"It'll be okay." He tried to sound confident. "Look, if Amos wanted to hurt us, he could've done it by now. Try to get some sleep."

"I concur," Naruto said. Carter was surprised that his voice was strong enough to go through such thick walls. "If Amos wanted to hurt us, then he would have already."

Sadie was silent for a minute before she spoke again. "Carter?"

"Yeah?"

"It was magic, wasn't it? What happened to Dad at the museum. Amos's boat. This house. All of it's magic."

"I think so."

"It was," Naruto added with absolute certainty.

Carter could hear her sigh. "Good. At least I'm not going mad."

"Don't let the bedbugs bite," He called. And he realized he hadn't said that to Sadie since they had lived together in Los Angeles, when Mom was still alive.

"I miss Dad," she said. "I hardly ever saw him, I know, but...I miss him."

Carter's eyes got a little teary, but he took a deep breath. He was not going to go all weak. Sadie needed him. Julius needed them.

"We'll find him," Carter told her. "Pleasant dreams."

I listened, but the only thing I heard was Muffin meowing and scampering around, exploring her new space. He also vaguely heard whispering on the other side of the wall, and assumed Sadie was talking to Naruto quietly. At least she didn't seem unhappy.

He got ready for bed and crawled in. The covers were comfortable and warm, but the pillow was just too weird. It gave Carter neck cramps, so he put it on the floor and went to sleep without it.

That was Carter Kane's first step he unknowingly took in learning magic.


	5. Chapter 5: Magical Explanations

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Kane Chronicles**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Magical Explanations**

As Carter slept, he felt himself go weightless. He drifted up, turned, and saw his own sleeping form below.

_'I'm dying,'_ was his first thought. But that wasn't it. He wasn't a ghost. He had a new shimmering golden form with wings instead of arms. He was some kind of bird.

Carter knew he wasn't dreaming, because he didn't dream in color. He certainly don't dream in all five senses. The room smelled faintly of jasmine. Carter could hear the carbonation bubbles pinging in the can of ginger ale. He'd opened on his nightstand. He could feel a cold wind ruffling through his feathers, and he realized the windows were open. He didn't want to leave, but a strong current pulled him out of the room like a leaf in a storm. The lights of the mansion faded below. The skyline of New York blurred and disappeared. He shot through the mist and darkness, strange voices whispering all around him. His stomach tingled as it had earlier that night on Amos's barge. Then the mist cleared, and he was in a different place. He nearly gasped. There was a 9 tailed fox by his side, with familiar cerulean blue eyes.

The two floated above a barren mountain. Far below, a grid of city lights stretched across the valley floor. Definitely not New York. It was nighttime, but Carter could tell he was in the desert. The wind was so dry, the skin on his face was like paper. And he knew that didn't make sense, but his face felt like his normal face, as if that part of him hadn't transformed into a bird.

The fox grinned. "Yes boy," it said, sounding eerily similar to someone Carter knew. "You are beginning to learn."

Below them on a ridge stood two figures. They didn't seem to notice Carter and the fox, and he realized he wasn't glowing anymore. In fact he was pretty much invisible, floating in the darkness. He couldn't make out the two figures clearly, except to recognize that they weren't human. Staring harder, Carter could see that one was short, squat, and hairless, with slimy skin that glistened in the starlight—like an amphibian standing on its hind legs. The other was tall and scarecrow skinny, with rooster claws instead of feet. He couldn't see it's face very well, but it looked red and moist and...well, Carter was sure as hell glad that he couldn't see better.

"Where is he?" the toadie-looking one croaked nervously.

"Hasn't taken a permanent host yet," the rooster-footed guy chided. "He can only appear for a short time."

"You're sure this is the place?"

"Yes, fool! He'll be here as soon—"

A fiery form appeared on the ridge. The two creatures fell to the ground, groveling in the dirt, and Carter prayed like crazy that he really was invisible. The fox simply chuckled.

"My lord!" the toad said.

Even in the dark, the newcomer was hard to see—just the silhouette of a man outlined in flames.

"What do they call this place?" the man asked. And as soon as he spoke, Carter knew for sure he was the guy who'd attacked his dad at the British Museum. All the fear he'd felt at the museum came rushing back, paralyzing him. He remembered trying to pick up that stupid rock to throw, but he hadn't been able to do even that. He'd completely failed his dad.

"Coward," the fox sneered, and something stirred within Carter. He grew angry at this beast for dare calling _him _a coward.

"My lord," Rooster Foot said. "The mountain is called Camelback. The city is called Phoenix."

The fiery man laughed—a booming sound like thunder. "Phoenix. How appropriate! And the desert so much like home. All it needs now is to be scoured of life. The desert should be a sterile place, don't you think?"

"Oh yes, my lord," the toadie agreed. "But what of the other four?"

"One is already entombed," the fiery man said. "The second is weak. She will be easily manipulated. That leaves only two. And they will be dealt with soon enough."

"Er...how?" the toadie asked.

The fiery man glowed brighter. "You are an inquisitive little tadpole, aren't you?" He pointed at the toad and the poor creature's skin began to steam.

"No!" the toadie begged. "No-o-o-o!"

Carter could hardly watch. He didn't want to see this happen. If you've heard what happens when cruel kids pour salt on snails, you'll have a pretty good idea of what happened to the toadie. Soon there was nothing left.

Rooster Foot took a nervous step back. Carter couldn't blame him.

"We will build my temple here," the fiery man said, as if nothing had happened. "This mountain shall serve as my place of worship. When it is complete, I will summon the greatest storm ever known. I will cleanse everything. Everything."

"Yes, my lord," Rooster Foot agreed quickly. "And, ah, if I may suggest, my lord, to increase your power..." The creature bowed and scraped and moved forward, as if he wanted to whisper in the fiery man's ear.

Just when Carter thought Rooster Foot was going to become fried chicken for sure, he said something to the fiery dude that Carter couldn't make out, and the fiery dude burned brighter.

"Excellent! If you can do this, you will be rewarded. If not..."

"I understand, my lord."

"Go then," the fiery man said. "Unleash our forces. Start with the longnecks. That should soften them up. Collect the younglings and bring them to me. I want them alive, before they have time to learn their powers. Do not fail me."

"No, lord."

"Phoenix," the fiery man mused. "I like that very much." He swept his hand across the horizon, as if he were imagining the city in flames. "Soon I will rise from your ashes. It will be a lovely birthday present."

The fox chuckled. "You'd best hurry boy." It looked at Carter, and for a second he saw another face. Blonde hair, cerulean eyes, and 3 whisker marks on each cheek. "The red lord must be defeated. Will you rise to the challenge once more?"

* * *

Carter woke with my heart pounding, back in my own body. He felt hot, as if the fiery guy were starting to burn him. Then he realized that there was a cat on his chest.

Muffin stared at Carter, her eyes half closed. "Mrow."

"How did you get in?" He muttered. He sat up, and for a second he wasn't sure where he was. Some hotel in another city? He almost called for his dad...and then remembered.

Yesterday. The museum. The sarcophagus.

It all crashed down on him so hard that he could barely breathe. '_Stop,'_ he told myself. '_You don't have time for grief.'_ And, as strange as it sounds, but the voice in his head almost sounded like a different person—older, stronger. Either that was a good sign...or he was going crazy.

_Remember what you saw_, the voice said. _He's after you. You have to be ready._

Carter shivered. He desperately wanted to believe he'd just had a bad dream, but he knew better. He'd been through too much in the last day to doubt what he'd seen. Somehow, he'd actually left his body while he slept. Carter had been to Phoenix—thousands of miles away. The fiery dude was there. He hadn't understood much of what had been said, but the red dude talked about sending his forces to capture the younglings. Gee, wonder who that could be?

Muffin jumped off the bed and sniffed at the ivory headrest, looking up at Carter as if she were trying to tell him something.

"You can have it," he told her. "It's uncomfortable."

She butted her head against it and stared at the curly haired boy accusingly. "Mrow."

"Whatever, cat."

He got up and showered. When he tried to get dressed, he found that his old clothes had disappeared in the night. Everything in the closet was his size- thank god- but way different than what he was used to—baggy drawstring pants and loose shirts, all plain white linen, and robes for cold weather, kind of what the fellahin, the peasants in Egypt, wear. It wasn't exactly his style.

Sadie liked to tell Carter that he doesn't have style. She complains that he dresses like an old man— button-down shirt, slacks, dress shoes. But the thing was, his dad had always drilled into his head that he had to dress my best.

Carter remember the first time he explained it to him. He was ten at the time. They were on their way to the airport in Athens, and it was 112 degrees outside, and Carter was complaining that he wanted to wear shorts and a Tshirt. Why couldn't he be comfortable? They weren't going anywhere important that day—just traveling.

But Julius put his hand on Carter's shoulder. "Carter, you're getting older. You're an African American man. People will judge you more harshly, and so you must always look impeccable."

"That isn't fair!" Carter insisted.

"Fairness does not mean everyone gets the same," Dad said. "Fairness means everyone gets what they need. And the only way to get what you need is to make it happen yourself. Do you understand?"

Carter told him he didn't. But still, he did what he asked—like caring about Egypt, and basketball, and music. Like traveling with only one suitcase. He dressed the way Julius wanted him to, because Julius was usually right. In fact he'd never known him to be wrong...until the night at the British Museum.

At any rate, he put on the linen clothes from the closet. The slipper shoes were comfortable, though he honestly doubted they'd be much good to run in.

The door to Sadie's room was open, but she wasn't there. There was another door in her room that was also open: Naruto's door. Thankfully his bedroom door wasn't locked anymore. Muffin joined him and they walked downstairs, passing a lot of unoccupied bedrooms on the way. The mansion could've easily slept a hundred people, but instead it felt empty and sad.

"You'd better be careful," Naruto's voice came as he stopped Carter, who was about to walk into a pillar.

"Oh," Carter mumbled. "Thanks."

Naruto smiled. "No prob. Just be careful man." Carter nodded. He actually got a good look at him now.

Naruto's sun kissed blonde hair was spiky, reaching down to just below his shoulders. His cerulean blue eyes seemed to ooze out a feeling of peace. The three whisker marks on his cheeks made him seem odd, but looking cool. He no longer wore his white cloak. His clothes were now a white Tshirt, a brown jacket with a hood, blue jeans and black shoes. Around his neck were 2 different necklaces. The first was a green jewel, perhaps an emerald, but it was in very good condition. Carter wagered it would cost a lot. His other necklace consisted of something Carter had never seen before. There were 9 of them running along the thread.

"Magatama," Naruto said, getting a confused look from Carter. "On my necklace. They are called Magatama."

"Oh," Carter said. "How did you know I was curious?"

"You were looking at them," Naruto said simply.

Down in the Great Room, Khufu the baboon sat on the sofa with a basketball between his legs and a chunk of strange-looking meat in his hands. It was covered in pink feathers. ESPN was on the television, and Khufu was watching highlights from the games the night before.

"Hey," Naruto said. "Lakers win?"

Khufu looked at Naruto and patted his basketball like he wanted a game. "Agh, agh."

Naruto hummed, then shook his head. "Not right now. Later, okay?" Khufu grunted, but nodded.

The two could see Sadie and Amos out on the terrace, eating breakfast by the pool. It should've been freezing out there, but the fire pit was blazing, and neither Amos nor Sadie looked cold. Carter and Naruto headed their way, but Carter hesitated in front of the statue of Thoth. In the daylight, the bird-headed god didn't look quite so scary.

What had the red man said the night before? Something about catching them before they learned our powers. It sounded ridiculous, but just for a moment, Carter felt a surge of strength—like the night before when he'd opened the front door just by raising his hand. He felt like he could lift anything, even this thirty-foot-tall statue if he wanted to. In a kind of trance, he stepped forward.

Naruto grabbed is shoulder, and the feeling dissolved. "Not yet Carter," he said.

Carter blinked, then nodded. "Your right," he mumbled. "Dumb idea."

Besides, Carter could smell breakfast now—French toast, bacon, hot chocolate— he couldn't blame Naruto for stopping him.

"Ah, Carter and Naruto," Amos said. "Merry Christmas. Join us."

"About time," Sadie grumbled. "I've been up for ages."

But she held Carter's eyes for a moment, and he knew that they were thinking the exact same thing: Christmas. They hadn't spent a Christmas morning together since their mother died. Carter vaguely wondered if Sadie remembered how they used to make god's-eye decorations out of yarn and Popsicle sticks.

Amos poured himself a cup of coffee. His clothes were similar to those he'd worn the day before. His tailored suit was made of blue wool, he wore a matching fedora, and his hair was freshly braided with dark blue lapis lazuli, one of the stones the Egyptians often used for jewellery. Even his glasses matched. The round lenses were tinted blue. A tenor sax rested on a stand near the fire pit, and it was very easy to picture him playing it out there, serenading the East River.

As for Sadie, she was dressed in a white linen pajama outfit like Carter, but somehow she'd managed to keep her combat boots. She'd probably slept with them on. She looked pretty comical with the red-streaked hair and the outfit, but since he wasn't dressed any better, he could hardly make fun of her.

Sadie glanced at Naruto and blushed a bright red. Carter felt like hitting the blonde for catching his little sister's attention- why did he care now when he hadn't before?- but he didn't because a) the blonde could probably beat him without trying and b) he trusted Naruto. He oozed this aura that just made you feel like you could depend on him. Carter shook his head, snapping out of his thoughts.

"Um...Amos?" Carter asked. "You didn't have any pet birds, did you? Khufu's eating something with pink feathers."

"Mmm." Amos sipped his coffee. "Sorry if that disturbed you. Khufu's very picky. He only eats foods that end in -o. Doritos, burritos, flamingos."

Carter blinked. "Did you say—"

"Carter," Sadie warned. She looked a little queasy, like she'd already had this conversation. "Don't ask."

"Okay," the curly haired boy agreed. "Not asking."

"Please, Carter, help yourself." Amos waved toward a buffet table piled high with food. "Then we can get started with the explanations."

Carter didn't see any flamingo on the buffet table, which was fine by him, but there was just about everything else. He snagged some pancakes with butter and syrup, some bacon, and a glass of OJ. Naruto had somehow gotten a bowel filled with noodles and some toppings on it, along with a glass of coke. Where the hell did he get that?

Then Carter noticed movement in the corner of his eye. He glanced at the swimming pool. Something long and pale was gliding just under the surface of the water.

Carter very nearly dropped my plate. "Is that—"

"A crocodile," Amos confirmed. "For good luck. He's albino, but please don't mention that. He's sensitive."

"His name is Philip of Macedonia," Sadie informed her brother.

"That's a long name," he said.

"He's a long crocodile," Sadie said. "Oh, and he likes bacon."

To prove her point, she tossed a piece of bacon over her shoulder. Philip lunged out of the water and snapped up the treat. His hide was pure white and his eyes were pink. His mouth was so big, he could've snapped up an entire pig.

Naruto laughed. "Pink hide...hilarious!" Philip seemed to whimper, but a smile from Naruto made it realize he was just kidding.

"He's quite harmless to my friends," Amos assured Carter. "In the old days, no temple would be complete without a lake full of crocodiles. They are powerful magic creatures."

"Right," Carter said slowly. "So the baboon, the crocodile...any other pets I should know about?"

Amos thought for a moment. "Visible ones? No, I think that's it."

Carter took a seat as far from the pool as possible. Muffin circled his legs and purred. He desperately hoped she had enough sense to stay away from magic crocodiles named Philip.

"So, Amos," Carter said between bites of pancake. "Explanations."

"Yes," he agreed. "Where to start..."

"Perhaps we should start with Julius?" Naruto suggested. "It's as good a place as any."

Amos took a deep breath. "Julius was attempting to summon a god. Unfortunately, it worked."

"Any god in particular?" Carter asked casually. "Or did he just order a generic god?"

Sadie kicked him under the table. Naruto rolled his eyes like Carter was an idiot.

Amos took a bite of bagel. "There are many Egyptian gods, Carter. But your dad was after one in particular." He looked at him meaningfully.

"Osiris," Carter remembered. "When Dad was standing in front of the Rosetta Stone, he said, 'Osiris, come.' But Osiris is a legend. He's make-believe."

"I wish that were true." Amos stared across the East River at the Manhattan skyline, gleaming in the morning sun. "The Ancient Egyptians were not fools, Carter. They built the pyramids. They created the first great nation state. Their civilization lasted thousands of years."

"Yeah," Carter said. "And now they're gone."

Naruto scowled at Carter. "You are wrong," Naruto said with absolute conviction. "Did the west die? No. Egypt was the very root of Western Civilisation. As long as the west lives, so does Egypt. And so do her gods."

"Come on," Carter argued. "I mean...even if I believe there's a real thing called magic. Believing in ancient gods is totally different. You're joking, right?"

But even as he said it, he thought about the fiery guy in the museum, the way his face had shifted between human and animal. And the statue of Thoth—how its eyes seemed to follow him.

"Carter," Naruto sighed, "the Egyptians would not have been dumb enough to believe in fake gods. The beings described in their myths are very, very real. More real than I would like. In the old days, the priests of Egypt would call upon these gods to channel their power and perform what were known as 'miracles'. That is the origin of what we call magic. Like a lot of things, magic was first invented by the Egyptians. Each temple had a branch of magicians that was called the House of Life. Their magicians were famed throughout the ancient world."

"So your an Egyptian magician?" Carter said in disbelief.

Naruto hesitated. "I am...to an extent. However Amos and your father are, can tell that much."

Carter hesitated. "But he's an archaeologist," he said stubbornly.

"That's his cover story," Amos said. "You'll remember that he specialized in translating ancient spells, which are very difficult to understand unless you work magic yourself. Our family, the Kane family, has been part of the House of Life almost since the beginning. And your mother's family is almost as ancient."

"The Fausts?" Carer tried to imagine Grandma and Grandpa Faust doing magic.

"They had not practiced magic for many generations," Amos admitted. "Not until your mother came along. But yes, a very ancient bloodline."

Sadie shook her head in disbelief. "So now Mum was magic, too. Are you joking?"

"No jokes," Amos promised. "The two of you...you combine the blood of two ancient families, both of which have a long, complicated history with the gods. You are the most powerful Kane children to be born in many centuries."

Carter tried to let that sink in. He felt rather queasy. "You're telling me our parents secretly worshipped animal-headed gods?" he asked.

"Not worshipped," Amos corrected. "By the end of the ancient times, Egyptians had learned that their gods were not to be worshipped. They are powerful beings, primeval forces, but they are not divine in the sense one might think of God. They are created entities, like mortals, only much more powerful. We can respect them, fear them, use their power, or even fight them to keep them under control—"

"Fight gods?" Sadie interrupted.

"Constantly," Amos assured her. "But we don't worship them. Thoth taught us that."

Carer looked at Sadie for help. But Sadie was looking like she believed every word. "So..." Carter said. "Why did Dad break the Rosetta Stone?"

"Oh, I'm sure he didn't mean to break it," Amos said. "That would've horrified him. In fact, I imagine my brethren in London have repaired the damage by now. The curators will soon check their vaults and discover that the Rosetta Stone miraculously survived the explosion."

"But it was blown into a million pieces!" Carter yelled out. "How could they repair it?"

Amos picked up a saucer and threw it onto the stone floor. The saucer shattered instantly. "That was to destroy," Amos said. "I could've done it by magic—ha-di—but it's simpler just to smash it. And now..." Amos held out his hand. "Join. Hi-nehm." A blue hieroglyphic symbol burned in the air above his palm.

The pieces of the saucer flew into his hand and reassembled like a puzzle, even the smallest bits of dust gluing themselves into place. Amos put the perfect saucer back on the table.

"Some trick," Carter managed. He tried to sound calm about it, but I was thinking of all the odd things that had happened to my dad and me over the years, like those gunmen in the Cairo hotel who'd ended up hanging by their feet from a chandelier. Was it possible his father had used magic to do that?

Amos poured milk in the saucer, and put it on the floor. Muffin came padding over. "At any rate, your father would never intentionally damage a relic. He simply didn't realize how much power the Rosetta Stone contained. You see, as Egypt faded, its magic collected and concentrated into its remaining relics. Most of these, of course, are still in Egypt. But you can find some in almost every major museum. A magician can use these artifacts as focal points to work more powerful spells."

"I don't get it," Carter said.

"Forgive him Carter," Naruto said. "It takes years to understand magic, and he is trying to explain it to you in a single morning, which is practically impossible."

"The important thing is, for the past six years your father has been looking for a way to summon Osiris," Amos said, "and last night he thought he had found the right artifact to do it."

"Wait, why did he want Osiris?"

Sadie gave her brother a troubled look. "Carter, Osiris was the lord of the dead. Dad was talking about making things right. He was talking about Mum."

Suddenly the morning seemed colder. The fire pit sputtered in the wind coming off the river.

"He wanted to bring Mom back from the dead?" he said. "But that's crazy!"

Amos hesitated. "It would've been dangerous. Inadvisable. Foolish. But not crazy. Your father is a powerful magician. If, in fact, that is what he was after, he might have accomplished it, using the power of Osiris."

Carter stared at Sadie. "You're actually buying this?"

"You saw the magic at the museum. The fiery bloke. Dad summoned something from the stone."

"Yeah," he said, thinking of his dream. "But that wasn't Osiris, was it?"

"No," Amos said. "Your father got more than he bargained for. He did release the spirit of Osiris. In fact, I think he successfully joined with the god—"

"Joined with?"

Amos held up his hand. "Another long conversation. For now, let's just say he drew the power of Osiris into himself. But he never got the chance to use it because, according to what Sadie has told me, it appears that Julius released five gods from the Rosetta Stone. Five gods who were all trapped together."

Carter glanced at Sadie. "You told him everything?"

"He's going to help us, Carter."

Carter was not ready to trust him, even if Amos _was _his uncle. But he supposed he had no choice.

"Okay, yeah," I said. "The fiery guy said something like 'You released all five.' What did he mean?"

Amos sipped his coffee. The faraway look on his face reminded Carter of Julius. "I don't want to scare you."

"Too late."

"The gods of Egypt are very dangerous. For the last two thousand years or so, we magicians have spent much of our time binding and banishing them whenever they appear. In fact, our most important law, issued by Chief Lector Iskandar in Roman times, forbids unleashing the gods or using their power. Your father broke that law once before."

Sadie's face paled. "Does this have something to do with Mum's death? Cleopatra's Needle in London?"

"It has everything to do with that, Sadie. Your parents...well, they thought they were doing something good. They took a terrible risk, and it cost your mother her life. Your father took the blame. He was exiled, I suppose you would say. Banished. He was forced to move around constantly because the House monitored his activities. They feared he would continue his...research. As indeed he did."

Carter thought about the times Dad would look over his shoulder as he copied some ancient inscriptions, or wake him up at three or four in the morning and insist it was time to change hotels, or warn him not to look in his workbag or copy certain pictures from old temple walls—as if their lives depended on it.

"Is that why you never came round?" Sadie asked Amos. "Because Dad was banished?"

"The House forbade me to see him. I loved Julius. It hurt me to stay away from my brother, and from you children. But I could not see you—until last night, when I simply had no choice but to try to help. Julius has been obsessed with finding Osiris for years. He was consumed with grief because of what happened to your mother. When I learned that Julius was about to break the law again, to try to set things right, I had to stop him. A second offense would've meant a death sentence. Unfortunately, I failed. I should've known he was too stubborn."

Carter looked down at my plate. His food had gotten cold. Muffin leaped onto the table and rubbed against his hand. When he didn't object, she started eating his bacon. He glanced at Naruto, and saw the blonde eating his food without a care in the world.

"Last night at the museum," Carter said, "the girl with the knife, the man with the forked beard—they were magicians too? From the House of Life?"

"Yes," Amos said. "Keeping an eye on your father. You are fortunate they let you go."

"The girl wanted to kill us," Carter remembered. "But the guy with the beard said, not yet."

"They don't kill unless it is absolutely necessary," Amos said. "They will wait to see if you are a threat."

"Why would we be a threat?" Sadie demanded. "We're children! The summoning wasn't our idea."

Amos pushed away his plate. "There is a reason you two were raised separately."

"Because the Fausts took Dad to court," Carter said matter-of-factly. "And Dad lost."

"It was much more than that," Amos said. "The House insisted you two be separated. Your father wanted to keep you both, even though he knew how dangerous it was."

Sadie looked like she'd been smacked between the eyes. "He did?"

"Of course. But the House intervened and made sure your grandparents got custody of you, Sadie. If you and Carter were raised together, you could become very powerful. Perhaps you have already sensed changes over the past day."

Carter thought about the surges of strength he'd been feeling, and the way Sadie suddenly seemed to know how to read Ancient Egyptian. Then he thought of something even further back.

"Your sixth birthday," he told Sadie.

"The cake," she said immediately, the memory passing between them like an electric spark.

At Sadie's sixth birthday party, the last one they'd shared as a family, Sadie and Carter had a huge argument. Carter couldn't remember what it was about. He thought he wanted to blow out the candles for her. They started yelling. She grabbed his shirt. He pushed her. He remembered their Dad rushing toward them, trying to intervene, but before he could, Sadie's birthday cake exploded. Icing splattered the walls, their parents, the faces of Sadie's little six-year-old friends. Julius and Ruby separated them. They sent Carter to his room. Later, they said they must've hit the cake by accident as they were fighting, but Carter knew they hadn't. Something much weirder had made it explode, as if it had responded to their anger. He remembered Sadie crying with a chunk of cake on her forehead, an upside-down candle stuck to the ceiling with its wick still burning, and an adult visitor, one of his parents' friends, his glasses speckled with white frosting.

Carter turned to Amos. "That was you. You were at Sadie's party."

"Vanilla icing," he recalled. "Very tasty. But it was clear even then that you two would be difficult to raise in the same household."

"And so..." he faltered. "What happens to us now?" I didn't want to admit it, but I couldn't stand the thought of being separated from Sadie again. She wasn't much, but she was all I had.

"You must be trained properly," Amos said, "whether the House approves or not."

"Why wouldn't they approve?" Carter asked.

"I will explain everything, don't worry. But we must start your lessons if we are to stand any chance of finding your father and putting things right. Otherwise the entire world is in danger. If we only knew where—"

"Phoenix," he blurted out.

Amos stared at me. "What?"

"Last night I had...well, not a dream, exactly..." he felt stupid, but Carter told him what had happened while he had slept.

Judging from Amos's expression, the news was even worse than Carter thought. "You're sure he said 'birthday present'?" he asked.

"Yeah, but what does that mean?"

"And a permanent host," Amos said. "He didn't have one yet?"

"Well, that's what the rooster-footed guy said—"

"That was a demon," Amos said. "A minion of chaos. And if demons are coming through to the mortal world, we don't have much time. This is bad, very bad."

"If you live in Phoenix," Carter said.

"Carter, our enemy won't stop in Phoenix. If he's grown so powerful so fast...What did he say about the storm, exactly?"

"He said: 'I will summon the greatest storm ever known.'"

Amos scowled. "The last time he said that, he created the Sahara. A storm that large could destroy North America, generating enough chaos energy to give him an almost invincible form."

"What are you talking about? Who is this guy?"

Amos waved away the question. "More important right now: why didn't you sleep with the headrest?"

Carter shrugged. "It was uncomfortable." he looked at Sadie for support. "You didn't use it, did you?"

Sadie rolled her eyes. "Well, of course I did. It was obviously there for a reason."

Carter glanced at Naruto who chuckled nervously. "Yeah...don't like the headrest either."

"Carter, Naruto," Amos said, "sleep is dangerous. It's a doorway into the Duat."

"Lovely," Sadie grumbled. "Another strange word."

"Ah...yes, sorry," Amos said. "The Duat is the world of spirits and magic. It exists beneath the waking world like a vast ocean, with many layers and regions. We submerged just under its surface last night to reach New York, because travel through the Duat is much faster. Carter, your consciousness also passed through its shallowest currents as you slept, which is how you witnessed what happened in Phoenix. Fortunately, you survived that experience. But the deeper you go into the Duat, the more horrible things you encounter, and the more difficult it is to return. There are entire realms filled with demons, palaces where the gods exist in their pure forms, so powerful their mere presence would burn a human to ashes. There are prisons that hold beings of unspeakable evil, and some chasms so deep and chaotic that not even the gods dare explore them. Now that your powers are stirring, you must not sleep without protection, or you leave yourself open to attacks from the Duat or...unintended journeys through it. The headrest is enchanted, to keep your consciousness anchored to your body."

"You mean I actually did..." Carter's mouth tasted like metal. "Could he have killed me?"

Amos's expression was grave. "The fact that your soul can travel like that means you are progressing faster than I thought. Faster than should be possible. If the Red Lord had noticed you—"

"The Red Lord?" Sadie said. "That's the fiery bloke?"

Amos rose. "I must find out more. We can't simply wait for him to find you. And if he releases the storm on his birthday, at the height of his powers—"

"You mean you're going to Phoenix?" Carter could barely get the words out. "Amos, that fiery man defeated Dad like his magic was a joke! Now he's got demons, and he's getting stronger, and—you'll be killed!"

Amos gave them a dry smile, like he'd already weighed the dangers and didn't need a reminder. His expression reminded Carter painfully of his Dad's. "Don't count your uncle out so quickly, Carter. I've got some magic of my own. Besides, I must see what is happening for myself if we're to have any chance at saving your father and stopping the Red Lord. I'll be quick and careful. Just stay here. Muffin will guard you."

Carter blinked. "The cat will guard us? You can't just leave us here! What about our training?"

"When I return," Amos promised. "Don't worry, the mansion is protected. Just do not leave. Do not be tricked into opening the door for anyone. And whatever happens, do not go into the library. I absolutely forbid it. I will be back by sunset. Also...the thought of that fox you described worries me."

Carter saw Naruto out the corner of his eye, his fist clenched, his eyes seeming to flicker between a burning red and his usual cerulean blue.

Before they could protest, Amos walked calmly to the edge of the terrace and jumped.

"No!" Sadie screamed. The siblings ran to the railing and looked over. Below was a hundred-foot drop into the East River. There was no sign of Amos. He'd simply vanished.

Philip of Macedonia splashed in his pool. Muffin jumped onto the railing and insisted they pet her. They were alone in a strange mansion with a baboon, a crocodile, a weird cat, and the enigma known as Naruto Uzumaki. And apparently, the entire world was in danger.

Carter looked at Sadie. "What do we do now?"

She crossed her arms. "Well, that's obvious, isn't it?" When Carter blinked, Sadie rolled her eyes. "We explore the library."

They heard Naruto sigh. "Just like Konohamaru..." he muttered. "No...probably worse..."

Sadie seemed to take that as a compliment. "Come on!" She insisted. "Let's go!"


End file.
